Pleasanton Weekly

Police: 'victim' fabricated tale of robbery and attempted kidnapping

District Attorney will seek reimbursement of police investigation expenses

by Glenn Wohltmann

An attempted kidnapping and purse snatching reported to police last week turned out to be a false alarm -- and a false report, according to a news release by the Pleasanton Police Department.

Jennifer Flores, 23, of Pleasanton, who claimed she and her infant son were the target of an attack May 16, was arrested at about 3 p.m. Wednesday for filing a false police report, a misdemeanor. She was booked into Santa Rita Jail after police took her into custody at her job in Dublin.

Flores originally claimed two men jumped her at about 6:20 p.m. in the 4400 block of Seminole Way, near the bus stop on the south side of West Las Positas Boulevard. She told police one of the men pushed her down and grabbed her purse while the other tried to make off with her baby in a stroller, abandoning it -- and the infant -- when it tipped over.

Police spent hours investigating the case because of its serious nature. As the investigation progressed, however, they became suspicious of the information they'd been given.

"A significant part of the investigation focused on the information that was provided by the victim," the release states. "As detectives spent more time with Flores, they discovered several major inconsistencies in her statement."

In fact, police said they found surveillance video of Flores leaving her purse at Domino's Pizza in Pleasanton about an hour before she reported the robbery.

The video also showed the purse with Domino's employees during the same time period Flores said the crime took place, and video from the next day showed her returning to the store to recover the purse she claimed had been stolen.

"Even after Flores recovered her purse from Domino's she continued to lie to detectives and perpetuate the false report of a robbery and attempted kidnapping of her infant son," the release states.

After Flores was taken into custody, a search turned up the property she'd reported as stolen.

"Flores finally admitted she fabricated the entire story and there was no truth to what she had reported," the release says.

She was booked at Santa Rita Jail with $10,000 bail. Filing a false police report carries up to six months in jail.

The Pleasanton Police Department spent about $2,980 in staff time and resources investigating Flores' claim. The Alameda County District Attorney will ask that Flores be ordered to reimburse the department for its expenses.